If you see my old man,
tell him I'm doing the best I can.
Tell him I understand,
and I owe all I am to my old man.
The bornin' is easy but
the livin' is hard
When your momma raises chickens
and you lost your paw
When the bad wind blows a corn all down
The frost comes on
before the harvest is done
It might have been different
on the other hand
If he hadn't gone away, my old man
If you see my old man
Tell him I'm doing the best I can
Tell him I understand
And I owe all I am to my old man
More passed on in the course of time,
and the sun dried up to a wisteria vine
I drifted then from place to place,
trying to find a friendly face
Looking I was all over the land,
hoping I'd run into my old man
If you see my old man,
tell him I'm doing the best I can
Tell him I understand,
and I owe all I am to my old man
Where he's gone to
I don't know,
don't even know why he had to go
He must have been a rover
or a ramblin' man
Maybe his shoes got filled up with sand
How can you love a man you hardly knew?
I don't know how, but I just do
If you see my old man
Tell him I'm doin' the best I can
Tell him I understand,
and I owe all I am to my old man
If you see my old man,
tell him I'm doing the best I can
Tell him I understand,
an d I owe all I am to my old man